Xavier wants Finn to commit; Galloway in next

Xavier University's new head coach Thad Matta is moving quickly to line up his first recruiting class.

After already gaining verbal commitments from three power forwards (Brandon Cole, Randy Holbrook, and Angelo Smith), Matta is now concentrating on the Musketeers' backcourt needs.

This past weekend, Dedrick Finn (left), a rock solid 6-1, 170 pound point guard from Castle High School in Newberg, IN, visited the Cincinnati campus and according to a report in today's Cincinnati Enquirer, was strongly encouraged to give the Atlantic 10 school his decision quickly.

His father, Derrick, told reporter Neil Schmidt:

"They need a decision, and we're not ready. It's frustrating. Dedrick's walking around in a funk. This is a lifetime decision.

We love Xavier. But they're looking at other guards. Why can't we look at other schools?"One of those other guards is Todd Galloway, a 6-0, 165 pound lead guard from Notre Dame Academy in Middlesburg, VA. Galloway, who raised a number of coaches eyebrows during last month's Big Time Tournament, is scheduled to be on Xavier's campus today.

Galloway has been on Xavier's radar screen for quite a while. According to NDA coach Larry Cullinane, Galloway would have signed with XU after his 1999-2000 season at Baltimore City College if he had met the NCAA's academic standards. Re-classified as a junior when he transferred to NDA last year, Galloway is now fully qualified.

Galloway is also scheduled to officially visit Miami (FL) and Florida State over the next two weekendshas. The Baltimore-native has also received offers from West Virginia, Virginia Tech, George Mason and Rhode Island. Galloway averaged 21.3 points, 6.9 assists and 4.0 rebounds last year at Notre Dame.

Matta started recruiting Finn at his previous job, head coach at Butler in Indianapolis. Other programs on Finn's list are Michigan State, Boston College and Mississippi State.

He averaged 20.5 points, 5.4 rebounds, six assists and four steals per game as a junior at Castle High. He also was chosen as one of the top 15 players in Indiana - regardless of class or position - by Hoosier Magazine.